By Emmanuel Akinwale
In Albert Camus’ magnum Opus, “The Rebel”, he wrote: “I rebel; therefore, we exist” This clause posits the worldview of an extremist and the ideological stance of a far-leftist. In an attempt to understand the semantics in Camus’ words, this chosen clause would be related to one of the anarchist schools of thought called Anarcho-Syndicalism.
However, before an exhaustive review of anarcho-syndicalism, what is Political Philosophy? Marx, in his early work “On the Jewish Question” and later in “The Communist Manifesto” and “Das Kapital,” defines political philosophy as the critical analysis of society, with a focus on the material conditions of production and the relationship between different social classes.
As well as there exists myriads of stipulative and complicated definitions for anarcho-syndicalism by Political Philosophers a lexical definition simplifies it as a form of development of trade unionism, that aims at the possession of the means of production and distribution, and ultimately at the control of society, by federated bodies of industrial workers, and that seeks to realize its purposes through general strikes, terrorism, sabotage.
To Noam Chomsky, it is a form of anarchism that places emphasis on the role of trade unions or syndicates as agents of social change. It involves the idea of workers directly managing and controlling their workplaces, without the need for a centralized state or authoritarian structures. He sees anarcho-syndicalism as a means of achieving social justice and dismantling oppressive power structures.
A significant work on Anarcho-Syndicalism was by Rudolf Rocker in 1938. Providing the Historical context, Anarcho-syndicalism, as examined through the lens of Rudolf Rocker’s “Anarcho-Syndicalism: Theory and Practice,” was marked by late 19th-century industrialisation. The advent of industrial capitalism led to exploitative labour conditions, prompting the rise of labour movements advocating for workers’ rights. Amid this backdrop, anarchism and syndicalism gained traction, rejecting state authority and emphasizing the role of organized labour in achieving revolutionary change.
Anarchist thinkers like Bakunin and Proudhon laid the groundwork for anti-authoritarian and anti-capitalist sentiments. Anarcho-syndicalism uniquely combined these principles with a focus on labour unions as vehicles for social transformation. Rocker’s analysis, particularly focused on the Spanish CNT and FAI during the early 20th century, illustrates how anarcho-syndicalist ideas manifested in concrete movements, influencing the Spanish labour movement and contributing to the broader social revolution during the Spanish Civil War.
The movement faced challenges, including government repression, opposition from conservative forces, and internal divisions. Nevertheless, anarcho-syndicalism had an international dimension, influencing movements in France, Italy, and Argentina. The outbreak of World War I and later World War II brought significant disruptions, leading to a decline in anarcho-syndicalist influence.
Rocker’s work serves as a historical account of anarcho-syndicalism’s development, contextualising it within the socio-economic challenges of industrial capitalism. Anarcho-syndicalism, with its emphasis on direct action, worker self-management, decentralisation, and solidarity, represents a response to the injustices of the time and a vision for a society based on voluntary cooperation and equality. Despite historical challenges and fluctuations, the core principles of anarcho-syndicalism continue to influence discussions on labour, power structures, and social justice.
Famous proponents of anarcho-syndicalism are Noam Chomsky, Johann Rudolf Rocker, Emma Goldman, Diego Abad de Santillan and many others.
It is however pertinent to note that, Anarcho-Syndicalism is not abstract as it has been put into practice in different political systems as well as organisations. In Johann Rudolf Rocker’s “Anarcho-Syndicalism: Theory and Practice” an exhaustive list of movements that practised Anarcho-Syndicalism were proffered among them are: French CGT (General Confederation of Labour), Mexican CGT (General Confederation of Workers), Argentinian FORA (Regional Workers’ Federation of Argentina), Italian USI (Italian Syndicalist Union), Spanish CNT (National Confederation of Labour) and FAI (Iberian Anarchist Federation)and German FAUD (Free Workers Union of Germany)
Thus, the praxis of anarcho-syndicalism brings to the fore the scientificness of political philosophy.
Despite a flurry of accolades showered on this theory of Political Philosophy, it has been severely criticised nonetheless one of such criticisms was by Murray Bookchin in 1992 who viewed it as an archaic ideology rooted in a narrowly economistic notion of bourgeois interest, indeed of a sectorial interest as such. It relies on the persistence of social forces like the factory system and the traditional class consciousness of the industrial proletariat that are waning radically in the Euro-American world in an era of indefinable social relations and ever-broadening social concerns. This fundamentally implies that it is a political philosophy that prioritizes the interests of the working class instead of communal freedom for society as a whole.
Essentially, this school of thought together with other Marxist Schools of thought advocates for the superiority of the proletariats as well as the revolutionary mechanism to pursue their well-being.
Given the growing strength of capitalism and the increasing exploitation of the working class, more far-leftist political theories are bound to develop.
